Charlie Porter on Musical Connections at Sing Sing: ''Involvement in Music is Life-Changing''

Last season, Charlie Porter and
his quartet visited Sing Sing Correctional Facility to collaborate
on and perform original music composed by inmates. As shared in
aprevious post, Carnegie Hall's Musical Connections
program offers weekly workshops at Sing Sing, like the one
described below, which lead to concerts featuring these new
compositions for the entire facility. Below, Charlie Porter shares
his experience in a workshop captured on film by CBS This
Morning. (Full
coverage can be found here.)

By Charlie Porter

Music is a powerful way to establish
common ground between people that might not normally interact with
one another. In this video, Dennis, one of the musicians at Sing
Sing who I'd not really had a chance to speak with yet, began
playing a chord progression on the guitar, and I started throwing
some ideas on top of it with my trumpet. Is there any better way
for two musicians to introduce themselves?

It is important to realize that we
all have the potential for creation or destruction and to consider
how much environment plays a role in our early lives. I was
fortunate to have been given a creative outlet in my childhood,
which I believe opened doors of opportunity and kept me on a
positive path, but there are many people in this country who are
less fortunate than I am. The musicians we worked with at Sing Sing
are more than just incarcerated convicts. They are men with
families, friends, talent, and dreams. Involvement in music, as all
of the Sing Sing musicians can attest, is life-changing. It is
never too late to receive the positive effects of making music.
Music does not judge or discriminate; it heals and strengthens our
connection to ourselves and to each other. I only wish I could work
with guys like Dennis, Kenyatta, and Mighty more often.

Musical Connections is a program
of Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute that offers diverse live
music experiences for people in healthcare settings, correctional
facilities, senior-service organizations, and homeless shelters
across New York City. Visit carnegiehall.org/MusicalConnections for
more information.